A Monthly Publication for the Baby Boomer
GLBT Community 
P. O. Box 240, Tewksbury, MA 01876
phone: 978-807-8184
info@goldenrainbowtimesnewspaper.com www.goldenrainbowtimesnewspaper.com

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The Golden Rainbow Times Newspaper is now a monthly (third Thursday) supplement  of the Bay Windows Newspaper, with a 20,000 copy distribution and is also available on the Bay Windows website.

Why LGBT Older People Turn to SAGE for Help

 Despite advances in LGBT civil rights, many senior care providers never stop to consider that their older clients may be lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) - and even those who do may not know how to provide services in culturally-sensitive ways. As a result, LGBT seniors often avoid seeking needed services out of fear of discrimination. The tendency for LGBT seniors to go "back in the closet" is particularly pronounced in situations where they are most vulnerable - such as when accessing home health care or residing in assisted living or residential care facilities. One study indicated that LGBT seniors may be as much as five times less likely to access needed health and social services because of their fear of discrimination from the very people who should be helping them.
 This type of social isolation has an enormous impact in the health and well-being of LGBT seniors. With LGBT seniors twice as likely to live alone than heterosexual seniors, more than four times as likely to have no children, the informal caregiving support we assume is in place for older adults may not be there for LGBT elders.
SAGE's Strategic Plan
 SAGE has adopted a new strategic plan that will guide SAGE's future as we continue to grow in our ability to serve our LGBT elders and advocate on their behalf. Read all about how SAGE will continue to provide services, programs, advocacy and communications.
 SAGE's Ad Campaign In the fall of 2008, SAGE's launched an ad campaign which took New York City by storm with the message that there's no expiration date on a full and active life. SAGE ads appeared in print media and in the public transportation system all over NYC. These ads depict SAGE clients, social workers, donors and volunteers in a vibrant light.
 
History and Background
 Programs like SAGE become an important "safety net" for LGBT elders. Incorporated by lesbian and gay activists and aging service professionals in 1978 as Senior Action in a Gay Environment, SAGE (now Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders) is the world's oldest and largest non-profit agency addressing the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender elders. SAGE works with LGBT elders to address and overcome the challenges of discrimination in senior service settings, while also being an essential component in the creation of informal caregiving support, and development of new "family" networks. SAGE's programs include:
• The nation's first Friendly Visiting program for frail and homebound LGBT seniors
• The country's first support group for LGBT seniors with HIV
• The nation's first program dedicated to caregiving services for LGBT seniors.The nation's first LGBT Senior Drop-In Center,
• The creation of the first national conferences devoted to LGBT aging concerns.
• The only Robert Wood Johnson Foundation "Faith in Action" grantee (of more than 2,000 nationwide) specifically targeting LGBT older people for supportive services,
• The recipient of a three-year, $900,000 grant from the Department of Health and Human Services and the Administration on Aging to create the nation's only national resource center on LGBT aging.

 Today, there are a growing number of retirement communities, senior housing and other high-end housing options targeting LGBT seniors. But for hundreds of thousands of LGBT seniors who will be aging in place in their own communities, SAGE programs and services provide the link they need to a safe and welcoming community.

History of the LGBT Aging Project
The LGBT Aging Project was founded in 2001 by a group of advocates from both the aging service network and the LGBT community who recognized that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender elders are invisible to mainstream elder service providers and that older LGBTs are invisible within LGBT community as well. 
The LGBT Aging Project hosted a LGBT Aging Summit with over 100 agencies and activists which resulted in a written action plan that outlined the goals of our work, ranging from training of mainstream elder care providers to civil marriage rights and expanded social activities for LGBT elders themselves.
 
In most cases our aim was to facilitate change in existing systems, not provide direct services ourselves. We projected completion of most of our work plan within three years.  However we have exceeded this timeline due to tremendous culture change and receptivity to LGBT issues over the past few years.
 
The LGBT Aging Project’s work is focused in Massachusetts, but we are also founding members of the National Roundtable on LGBT Aging, hosted by the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force
(NGLTF – The Task Force) which allows us to collaborate with colleagues throughout the country and address national policy issues together.
 
Since its inception the Aging Project has collaborated with community partners to conduct research among LGBT elders and mainstream providers, engaged scores of LGBT elders themselves, provided training to more than 2,000 people and increased public awareness of LGBT elders and caregivers, and the issues that impact their lives. We are proud of our pioneering and innovative work within both the mainstream and LGBT communities.




Walk to End Alzheimer's™
Make a difference in the lives of the 142,000 in Massachusetts and New Hampshire residents with Alzheimer’s disease!  The Alzheimer’s Association, MA/NH Chapter is on the MOVE to raise over $2 million this year for the fight against Alzheimer’s disease.  Since 1989, we’ve mobilized millions of Americans in the Alzheimer’s Association Memory Walk®; now, we ask you to register for Walk to End Alzheimer’s™, the nation’s largest event to raise awareness and funds for Alzheimer care, support and research. Since 1989, the Walk has raised more than $347 million nationally.  The MA/NH Chapter will host 12 walks in 2011, but walks are held in nearly 600 locations nationwide.    Last year’s MA/NH Walk raised over $1.9 million.   There are many ways to get involved:
Start a Team
Start a Walk to End Alzheimer's™ Team by becoming a Team Captain to recruit team members and motivate friends, family and coworkers to donate to the cause.
Join a Team
Join an existing Walk to End Alzheimer's™ Team and help collect donations from friends, family and coworkers.
Join as an Individual
Join as an individual participant and help collect donations from friends, family and coworkers.
Can’t Attend a Walk? Become a “Virtual” Walker
Join as a virtual walker if you cannot attend a Walk near you. Collect donations from family, friends and coworkers. Participate in spirit by walking on your own without being present on Walk day.
http://alz.org/



FENWAY HEALTH:
The gift you make today could help

save a life tomorrow.

Health Care reform is a topic on everyone's minds these days. In Massachusetts, we've taken the lead in developing the model the nation is looking to for expanded access to health care and health insurance. But despite the progress we've made, there are still thousands of people who slip through the safety net each day and don't have coverage for access to the health care they need and deserve.

At Fenway Health, it is at the core of our mission to make sure that NO ONE goes without access to health care. Whether you are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, straight, old, young, black, white, student, retired, or anywhere in between, we take pride in serving anyone who enters our door with honor and respect.

But because we still haven't achieved universal access to health care for everyone, there is still work to be done. And we can't do it without your support. Many people we serve each day don't have the resources or the insurance to cover the cost of the care they so desperately need. Your gifts to Fenway help us cast that safety net, wide and far and make sure no one in our
community goes without high quality health care.

The gift you make today could help save a life tomorrow.

Make a gift using this link:
http://www.fenwayhealth.org



David Bohnett Foundation---check it out!!!
David Bohnett and the David Bohnett Foundation are committed to improving society through social activism.We pursue our mission by providing funding, state-of-the-art technology and technical support to innovative organizations and institutions that, in addition to meeting our funding guidelines, share our vision.www.bohnettfoundation.org




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